Goukouni Oueddei

Goukouni Oueddei (Arabic: كوكوني عويدي‎ Kūkūnī ʿWaīday; born 1944 in Zouar)[1] is a Chadian political figure. He was Head of State of Chad from 1979 to 1982.

Goukouni Oueddei
3rd President of Chad
In office 3 September 1979 – 7 June 1982
Vice President	Wadel Abdelkader Kamougué
Preceded by	Lol Mahamat Choua
Succeeded by	Hissène Habré
In office 23 March 1979 – 29 April 1979
Vice President	Vacant
Preceded by	Félix Malloum
Personal details
Born	1944 (age 76–77) Zouar, Chad
Political party	FROLINAT

Biography

Goukouni is from the northern half of the country and is the son of Oueddei Kichidemi, derde of the Teda. He entered politics in the late 1960s as a militant in the National Liberation Front of Chad (FROLINAT) led by Abba Siddick. FROLINAT resented the political dominance enjoyed by southerners under the presidency of François Tombalbaye and advocated the participation of central and northern peoples. After Tombalbaye's assassination in 1975, tensions between the two geographical halves escalated into a convoluted civil war that involved several Chadian political groups, Libya, the United States, and France. The conflict was to last through the 1980s. Goukouni viewed the dictatorial Tombalbaye regime as an instrument of continued French hegemony in Chad.

President

Goukouni was installed as interim Chadian head of state on 23 March 1979. He was acclaimed President of the Transitional Government of National Unity (GUNT), which sought reconciliation between warring factions, on 10 November 1979. Goukouni, a Cold War neutralist who supported Libya, was Head of State; Wadel Abdelkader Kamougué (a southern moderate) was Vice President; Hissène Habré (a pro-West northerner) was Minister of Defence; and Acyl Ahmat (a strongly pro-Libyan Arab) was Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Personal rivalries (especially between erstwhile allies Goukouni and Habré) limited the government's effectiveness and contributed to the perception of Goukouni as an indecisive puppet of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. There was even a Libyan proposal to annex Chad, which drew opposition from all ideological camps. In a last-ditch attempt to salvage his beleaguered government, Goukouni appointed Djidingar Dono Ngardoum as prime minister on 19 May 1982. The GUNT was, however, overthrown by Habré loyalists on 7 June 1982. Goukouni fled from N'Djamena across the Chari River into Cameroon; he subsequently went into exile in Tripoli, Libya.[2] Acyl died in an unrelated accident, and Kamougué lost much of his base as Habré consolidated his power into a centralized military dictatorship.

With Libya

By 1983, Goukouni returned to Chad with substantial Libyan assistance to fight the Habré régime through guerrilla warfare. He was the most recognized Chadian oppositionist, whose views carried significant weight, though Habré granted only limited concessions in an attempt to reconcile with Goukouni. The former president reportedly demanded a new constitution and liberalization of political party activity, which Habré did not accede to.

He was placed under house arrest in August 1985 in Tripoli when the Libyan government disapproved his intentions of negotiating a truce with Habré. In October 1985, Libyan police arrested Oueddei, and in the process they shot him in the stomach. He then broke with the Libyans and went into exile in Algiers instead[2] in February 1987.[3] However, some questioned whether he had truly broken with the Libyans, and in July 1987 Oueddei said that he was on good terms with them.[2]

Goukouni met with Chadian President Idriss Déby on April 17, 2007, in Libreville, Gabon, to discuss ways to end a civil war. Saying that Chad was in grave danger, Goukouni expressed a hope that he could use his "moral authority" to save it. He said that in turn he wanted to be allowed to return to Chad from exile in the future, and he said that Déby had agreed to that.[4][5] On April 19, the leaders of two rebel groups rejected Goukouni's offer to mediate.[6]

Goukouni returned to Chad on July 30, 2007, along with about twenty other exiled opponents of the regime, for a discussion with Déby regarding the rebellion and how to resolve the situation. Goukouni and the others left Chad and returned to Libreville later on the same day.[7]

He met with Nigerien President Mamadou Tandja on March 4, 2008, discussing the situation in Chad following the February 2008 Battle of N'Djamena.[8]

In 2013 his youngest child, Saadie Goukouni Weddeye, was appointed to the Chadian government as Minister of Social Action.[9]

Special envoy

Amidst the 2015 Burundian unrest, central African leaders, including Déby, designated Goukouni as special envoy to the Great Lakes region on 25 May 2015 in order to help resolve the situation in Burundi.[10]

References

1. M. Lentz, Harris (4 February 2014). Heads of States and Governments Since 1945. Routledge. p. 156. ISBN 9781134264902.
2. James Brooke, "Habre Policy in Chad: Name Ex-Foes to Key Posts", The New York Times, August 18, 1987.
3. James Brooke, "Chad said to win vast Libyan booty", The New York Times, April 1, 1987.
4. "Tchad: Idriss Deby rencontre l'ex-président Goukouni Weddeye à Libreville", Agence France-Presse, April 17, 2007 (in French).
5. "L'ancien président Goukouni Weddeye veut "sauver le Tchad" de l'éclatement", Agence France-Presse, April 18, 2007 (in French).
6. "Les rebelles rejettent la médiation de l'ex-président Goukouni", Agence France-Presse, April 19, 2007 (in French).
7. "Une innovation dans la démarche de restauration de la paix au Tchad" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, Chadian government web site, July 31, 2007 (in French).
8. "L'ancien président tchadien Goukouni Weddeye reçu par le chef de l'Etat nigérien", Xinhua, March 4, 2008 (in French).
9. Justine Spiegel, "Saadie Goukouni Weddeye, enfant de l’exil", Jeune Afrique, 7 February 2013 (in French). Retrieved 6 February 2016.
10. Clement Manirabarusha and Goran Tomasevic, "Opposition breaks off Burundi peace talks over killing of opposition leader", Reuters, 25 May 2015.